A Cure for Alzheimer’s?

Although Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia in older adults, there is yet, no cure. However, the world is eagerly awaiting the results of a promising new drug called BAN2401. Silver Sage originally posted on this in early July, but even in the last few weeks, BAN2401 has made some headline news – so we want to bring you some more updates and information.

Fifteen years ago Forest Laboratories developed the only known drug (Namenda) to treat moderate to severe forms of dementia (Alzheimer’s). The other drug, cholinesterase inhibitors (Aricept, Exelon, Razadyne) are more commonly used for mild to moderate forms of Alzheimer’s. So BAN2401 is quite a breakthrough as many patients with dementia often hide their symptoms from loved ones until they are well into the moderate to late stages of dementia.

Although the drug BAN2401 is not yet ready for prescription for patients, the results are quite promising. Biogen is claiming that BAN2401 slowed dementia in patients by 30 percent. With more than 5 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s and countless older adults across the world, any progress made in the science of halting, stymieing or stopping this debilitating disease is welcome news. It’s been almost two decades with no progress on this disease – let’s hope BAN2401 is the answer.

Stephen Salloway, the Director of Neurology and the Memory and Aging Program at Butler hospital in Rhode Island states “The theory is if we can interrupt the plaque formation, and these toxic forms of amyloid, hopefully we can interrupt that whole process and slow down memory loss — and that’s why we’re excited about this finding.”

If the results of BAN2401 are as predicted, it could mean the end to Alzheimer’s if detected early enough. However, the drug still needs to go through phase 3 clinical trials and FDA examination. This could take years.

What can you do if you or your loved one has memory loss, dementia or Alzheimer’s? Make an appointment with a neurologist and ask about Namenda, Aricept, Exelon, Razadyne or even BAN2401. Maybe you could get in on the trial?!

Tags

Share this

About author

Silver Sage Magazine pool of writers and editors are #silversagers. We love writing and contributing to our audience in order to provide informative, timely and compelling content. We hope you find our articles relevant with a mature, sophisticated and insider’s voice.